robin rhode: chalk bikes, bulbs and barbed wire at lehmann maupin

from now until august 21, 2015, lehmann maupin’s new york gallery presents the work of south african artist robin rhode. the exhibition ‘borne frieze’ — a riff on the commonly used south african phrase ‘born frees’, given to the generation born after the end of apartheid — includes several new works that embody the importance of drawing to the artist’s multi-faceted vision. expanding upon rhode’s recurring use of visual and verbal puns, the exhibition juxtaposes the heritage of his home country with the ephemerality of his artistic practice.

chalk bike, 2015 | chalk and steel, edition of 3
bike: 41 x 72.5 x 19 inches / 104.1 x 184.2 x 48.3 cm
2 windows, each: 24.75 x 38.5 x 3 inches – 62.9 x 97.8 x 7.6 cm
all photos by max yawney / courtesy of the artist and lehmann maupin, new york and hong kong

rhode considers drawing to be a fundamental part of his practice. for ‘chalk bike’, the artist has created a life-sized replica of a bicycle out of chalk. black-pained gallery walls and white window frames act as a canvas for the bike ‘drawings’ etched onto the interior surroundings as though the faux-vehicle has been ridden on the walls.

view of ‘chalk bike’, 2015

drawing in the form of an environment is further illustrated in ‘evidence’, an installation composed of barbed wire placed at the ceiling and a stencil drawing of a skeleton. the human from hangs from the sharp coil, creating a juxtaposition between the organic forms and the materiality of barbed wires.

installation view of ‘evidence’

barbed wire meets stenciled skeleton for ‘evidence’

installation view of ‘borne frieze’

with ‘light giver light taker’, rhode enlarged the scale of light bulbs and crafted them from chalk and charcoal. rhode interacts with the objects, dragging and pulling them across the gallery’s dark gray floor. the resulting markings produce an ephemeral drawing that will remain for the duration of the exhibition.

light giver light taker, 2015 — edition of 3
black lightbulb: polyurethane foam, charcoal
white lightbulb: polyurethane foam, chalk
2 parts, each: 41.73 (height) x 25.2 (diameter) inches / 106 x 64 cm